Dry-kiln furnace



(No 'Medel.)

' W. KETUHAM.

DRY KILN FURNACE No. 408,724. Patented Aug. 13, 1889.

" I ENT-0R 461W i ATTORNEY I N PETERS: Phnmum m hor. wamin mn. DJ;

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

" WILLIAM KETCHAM, OF GLADEWATER, TEXAS.

DRY-Kl-LN FURNACE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 408,724, dated August 13, 1889. Application filed May 17, 1888- Serial No. 274,128. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM KETCHAM, of

Gladewater, in the county of Gregg and State of Texas, have invented a new and Improved Dry-Kiln Furnace, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled-in the artto which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to animprovement in dry-kiln furnaces, and has for its object to construct a furnace that-will eliminate orseparate the sparks, cinders, dust, and other waste products from the smoke, so that the heat from the outside of the furnace, with the heated smoke from the fines, will rise together on the inside of the kiln up through the material to be dried, and creosote and preserve the lumber or other wood and prevent its checking in the process of drying and preserve it from mildew after it is taken from the kiln.

A further object of my invention is to obtain a much higher degree of temperature Within the furnace by utilizing all of the heat than can be obtained when only the heat from the outside of the furnace alone is received within the kiln; and to this end my invention consists in the construction and come bination of the several parts, as will be hereinafter more particularly set forth, and pointed out in the claim.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar figures of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views.

Figure 1 is a horizontal section of my improved furnace. Fig. 2 is a central vertical section thereof. Fig. 3 is a transverse section on the line 00 0c of Fig. 2, and Fig. 4 is asimilar section on line y y of Fig. 2. v

The body 10 of the furnace is preferably constructed of metal, cylindrical in contour, and provided at its ends with one or more openings 11, which openings are covered by a suitable hinged door or doors 12, as illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2.

If the body of the furnace is of sufficient length, the same may be divided into two sections 13 and 14 by acentral vertical partition 15, as best shown in Fig. 2, each of which sections 13 and 14 will constitute and may be used as a complete furnace. Between the center of each section and the central partition 15 a bridge 16 is constructed, which bridge may be of any desired height, but preferably of a height about equal to one-half of the height of the furnace proper, the said bridge being made to extend transversely of the f urnace from side to side. The bridge and the end of the furnace serve as a supportfor the grate 17, which is fed with the coal or other fuel through the end openings 11. About centrally Within each section 13 and 14;, between the respective bridges 16 and the central partit-ion 15, there is a draft-aperture 18 in the bottom of the body, and below said aperture and communicating therewith there is secured to the under side of the body of the furnace a transverse flue pipe or tube 19, which is open at each end, dividing the draft of heat and smoke in opposite directions as it descends through the aperture 18. The open ends of the transverse pipe communicate with the interior of the drying chamber and convey thereto all of the heat and smoke that descends through the aperture and pipe from the furnace. The tubes 19 are each provided with a central vertical longitudinal baffleplate 20, that extends in each direction from the draft-aperture 18. The said plates are preferably of a height less than one-half the diameter of the tubes. The tubes 19 are adapted for connection in any suitable n1anner with the interior of the drying-chamber, and are intended to convey the hot air and smoke thereto from the furnace.

It will be observed by following the course of the arrows in Fig. 1 that the products of combustion pass from the grate in a body over the bridge 16 and down through the smoke outlet and aperture 18 into the tube 19. On reaching the said tube any rotary motion of the products of combustion will be suddenly arrested by coming in contact with the deflecting-plates 20, whereupon the cinders, ashes, dust, or otherwasteproductsmixed with the heat and smoke will drop into and lie upon the 'bottom of the transverse fluepipe, while the hot air and smoke will pass outward at each end of the pipe and onward to the interior of the drying-chamber, where Ioo they are united with the heat arising from the outside of the furnace, thereby raising the temperature of the chamber to amuch higher degree of heat than can be obtained from the heat arising from the outside of the furnace alone.

As the united heat and smoke in the chamber passes up through the lumber or other material to be dried, the smoke creosotes the material and prevents it from checking or cracking in the process of drying, and preserves it from ready absorption of moisture and consequent mildew after it is removed from the drying-chamber.

While I have described my furnace as composed of two or more independent sections, I do not confine myself to such construction, as the said furnace may contain but one section and have attached thereto but one transverse flue-pipe 19.

Having thus fully described my invention,

what Iclaim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is

A dry-kiln furnacehavinga grate at its forward end, a bridge-Wall extending upwardly from the lower side at the rear end of the grate, a smoke-outlet in the bottom between the rear end and bridge, and a transverse flue under the furnace, open at each end and dividing the draft at the smoke-outlet, said flue communicating with the interior of the drying-chamber, and having a vertical baffle plate under the smoke-outlet extending longitudinally along its bottom in each direction from said outlet, arresting the rotary motion of the products of combustion, substantially as set forth.

\VILLIAM KETCI-IAM.

Witnesses:

H. MAY, D. D. PINKHAM. 

